


Vanilla, Soft Touches, and Thick Blankets

by hiya_zelda (hiya_girlie)



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Genre: Cuddling, Early Morning Snuggles, F/M, Fluff without Plot, Kissing, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Tooth Rotting Fluff, just two people being in love, the day i stop writing these two is the day i die, this is incredibly self indulgent but i dont care
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:15:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24209575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hiya_girlie/pseuds/hiya_zelda
Summary: She had the amazing ability to make him feel safe with such a simple gesture, stealing away pieces of the lingering fear he kept in his heart with each kiss until he was certain he had never felt so peaceful, so protected.Then again, all of her was amazing.
Relationships: Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 98





	Vanilla, Soft Touches, and Thick Blankets

Vanilla.

The scent was faint, but it surrounded him, warm and sweet. It was much gentler on his nose than the old wood and crisp morning air that usually pulled him from his dreams, not quite so demanding, just relaxing and soothing. With each breath he took in more of the scent, basking in it, letting it fill his mind. Nothing else was as important as the strange yet wonderful feeling of serenity sweeping over him.

There were two possibilities: either he was still asleep and dreaming, or he had died and gone to heaven. The calmness in his chest didn’t feel real, of course it wouldn’t to someone who hadn’t felt it in so long. For the first time in months, he had no duties to worry about, no monsters to fight off. He could just lay here and nothing would bother him. 

Yes, that sounded nice.

Something stirred him out of his half conscious reverie, a delicate hand placed against his cheek, fingers curling under his jaw and thumb drawing tiny circles over his skin so tenderly. Another hand was pressed to his back between his shoulder blades, the spot he had the hardest time reaching when it itched. Fingernails skimmed over his bare skin, tickling against his spine as they floated over the old scars that were omnipresent across his skin. Every touch was light and slow, like they were trying to entice him back to sleep rather than wake him up. His eyes felt heavy and he was in no hurry to open them, relishing in the intimate gestures. The rest of the world could wait while he enjoyed this.

He let out a long sigh, his breathing deep and even. From his head to his toes, he felt warm, safe, tranquil. This was nothing like the nights he’d spent under the stars, with one hand never straying far from the hilt of his sword, his ears attuned to any distant sounds that could alert him to danger; his mind wasn’t screaming for a respite from being constantly on edge, his body wasn’t waiting to jump into action at a moment’s notice, his dreams weren’t reminders of the life threatening danger he was in. This was the peace he had fought so hard to earn.

He began to regain feeling in his limbs, his sluggish senses starting to process things other than the vanilla swirling inside his thoughts and the hands holding him so sweetly. He flexed his fingers, gliding the tips over the smooth silk beneath his hands. Thick, plush blankets were wrapped around his legs and they tickled his toes, like he was swaddled in sheep. He could hear the sound of another person’s breathing, feel their chest rising against his, their warm exhales fanning out over the crown of his head and breezing through his hair. 

His eyes slowly opened and he blinked back his drowsiness. In the dim morning light, he couldn’t see much aside from what was directly in front of him. Pale skin, its only blemish a small birthmark that lay along the pronounced line of her collar bone. It looked vaguely like a heart, and when he’d seen it for the first time, she’d been so embarrassed, but he thought it was so beautiful, just like the rest of her. He shifted to press his lips to the mark, his nose bumping her skin and inhaling the warm vanilla again. Oh, he loved the feel of her soft skin against his lips.

“Good morning,” a soft voice whispered. The words rolled over him, honeyed and rich, delicate and prim, regal and oh so lovely. He almost couldn’t believe his ears, waking up to her voice. Her hand on his back slipped up into his hair and lazily twirled strands, her nails massaging his scalp. It was even more heavenly than her hand on his jaw.

He remembered where he was. Tucked away in her room, on her bed that was too warm to want to leave. The blankets and sheets were tangled loosely around them, with more than half of them threatening to spill over the edge of the bed to the ground. Though the bed had more than enough space for them to sleep comfortably separately, their bodies were intertwined so tightly that the extra space made the bed seem massive. His arms were draped around her waist, his hands resting on the small of her back. The silk he felt under his fingertips was her crimson nightgown, hugging her curves with accents of sheer lace, and his head was pressed up to her neck. 

Their legs were an unruly mess, one of his pant legs had rolled up above his knee in his sleep and the hem of her dress had hiked up, exposing the parts of her legs uncovered by the blankets to the morning chill. He could feel his thighs sandwiched between hers, her legs curling around his protectively even though she was probably colder than he was. He didn’t feel much of the cold, safeguarded by the heat emanating from her body.

“I’m dreaming,” he mumbled, his voice low against her collar. This had to be a dream, something so wonderful couldn’t be real; it was a hallucination from his fatigued mind.

She giggled, the sound echoing through the silent room. “No, this is real,” she said, her smile noticeable through her words. She tucked a strand of hair behind his ear and traced her finger up his ear to its point, then returned to running her hand through his hair, combing her fingers through the knots that formed naturally. 

He pressed another kiss to her birthmark, delighting in the quiet laughter that followed. “I’ve died and gone to heaven.”

She clicked her tongue, giving the slightest shake of her head. “Wrong again.”

“My mind is playing tricks on me,” he said, smiling as he pulled away to look at her. 

The sun had yet to rise outside the room, but silvery light from the moon shone in, bathing the room in sparkling light. He could see her clearly now, and oh, goddesses above, she was everything he needed, from the messy tumble of her loose hair down her shoulders to the pale blush that spread across her cheeks when their eyes met. This was a completely different her than the one he was used to, and he was enjoying seeing this side of her immensely.

He wanted to say something about how beautiful she looked, like an angel from a fairytale, but he was still half asleep and too busy admiring her to think of anything. All he could think was that he wanted to see her like this again, cradled between his arms in her bed, her stoic queenly persona shed in favor of a softer side.

She smiled as he gaped at her, a sight to rival the fairest queens of old, and her hand trailed down his cheek to run the pad of her thumb over his bottom lip. Her light touch tickled, but he was enjoying it too much to complain. 

“I think you’re fine,” she said. She leaned up to kiss the corner of his mouth, her lips warm. Despite being so intimately close, he blushed under her lips, and her smile grew wider when she noticed. “You look a little drowsy, though. Go back to sleep.”

“Don’t need to tell me twice,” he sighed, settling back down. He laid his head back on the pillow next to hers, adjusting his arms around her so she was more comfortable. She tugged on the blankets, pulling them back onto the bed with a grunt, and hastily covered him with them. She slipped her arms around his neck and hugged him closer to her chest, her hands sliding down his back in a smooth motion. His eyes sank closed, and he breathed in deeply. Vanilla, soft touches, and thick blankets, like a little slice of heaven.

Her hands resumed massaging light circles on his back, and he let out a low sigh, goddess that felt so good. His back seemed to be perpetually tense, but the heels of her hands dug into the stiffest parts and worked the tight muscles into relaxed submission. 

“If you keep doing that I might have to marry you,” he said with a light chuckle. He said that about almost everything she did, and it was always true. 

“You are supposed to be sleeping,” she scolded, though her voice lacked any seriousness. 

“Fine, fine.” He closed his eyes and pretended to snore, exaggerating the noise so it filled the room. Sadly his acting left much to be desired; he sounded less like someone peacefully sleeping and more like a wild boar with its head cut off.

Peeking one eye open, he saw her roll her eyes. “If you snore like that I’m rejecting your offer,” she said. Her fond smile betrayed her false annoyance.

He feigned hurt feelings, taking the opportunity to snuggle closer against her. Every inch of her body that touched his was a paradise he had no intention of leaving. “You know you love me,” he teased. He leaned in to kiss her, but at the last second she turned her head so he ended up kissing her cheek instead of her lips. Her face grew warm at his touch, which he found quite adorable, and he kissed her again to savor the heat.

She gently took his face in her hands and moved it away. “I would love you more if you went back to bed,” she said. “It’s still early, I don’t have to be up for another few hours.”

“Will you give me a good night kiss?” He asked, favoring her with a playful grin.

She rolled her eyes again. “A good morning kiss,” she corrected, in a tone similar to the one she used when he purposefully used the wrong fork at dinner or addressed her by her title rather than her name. “The sun will be rising soon.”

“Okay then, will you give me a good morning kiss?”

She smiled, then leaned close and brushed her lips against his cheek. “There,” she said. He detected a faint smugness in her voice in beating him at his own game. “Now go to sleep.”

He huffed, adjusting the blankets with a pout. She raised an eyebrow at him, clearly not taking the bait, and as a last resort he stuck out his lower lip and looked at her pleadingly, hoping she wouldn’t be able to resist his puppy dog eyes. It was payback for last night, how she’d managed to convince him to stay the night with a demure yet utterly bewitching smile.

He felt a surge of warmth when she caved, bringing her hands to cup his face as she met him in the middle. In all other things, she was stern and immovable, iron rock built into a solid foundation of firm regality, but when she was alone with him, he found her to be so angelic and soft, a field of blossoming flowers on a warm day, and her kiss was no exception, brimming with unspoken tenderness and gentility. Her rosy lips were smoother than any silk and the dreamy sigh she let out against his mouth was more musical than any ballroom waltz.

His eyes grew heavy and he sank back into the pillows with a half yawn, but he didn’t complain when she started peppering delicate kisses across his cheeks and nose, the touches akin to a playful summer breeze. She had the amazing ability to make him feel safe with such a simple gesture, stealing away pieces of the lingering fear he kept in his heart with each kiss until he was certain he had never felt so peaceful, so protected. 

Then again, _all_ of her was amazing. 

He thought about the time they had spent together just after the war, how she had tended to his wounds with fierce compassion that reminded him of fairy magic, and the time they had spent together since then, rebuilding Hyrule and repairing their own lives. They were pillars of strength for the weary people, and even more so for each other. He could recall many nights where he had stumbled to her, his mind filled with thoughts as dark as pitch, and she had spoken with nothing but sympathy, offering reassurance that everything would be alright, and there had been nights when she had come to him, hot tears pooling in the corners of her eyes as her body was wracked with guilt, and begged his forgiveness for the pain he had endured, time and time again he told her that she had done nothing wrong. 

They put back the broken pieces of their worlds, not in their original places, but somewhere far better, somewhere where no evil or sorrow could reach them so long as they were together, and to him, that made it all worth it. _She_ made it all worth it; worth the pain and the heartache and any other misfortune that befell him because she was the blinding beacon of light he had so desperately wandered about in the darkness for, and goddesses be damned if he didn’t love her with every fiber of his being.

She stopped her kisses, leaving his face feeling warm from her breath, and settled down beside him, pressing her forehead against his and taking his hands from her back to hold them, effortlessly lacing their fingers together like they had been made for each other. She pressed their interlaced hands to her chest, shifting her legs slightly. The vanilla swirled around him once more, filling his thoughts with pleasantries, and he exhaled slowly, his breath puffing against her cheeks.

“Zelda,” he murmured, managing to keep his eyes open despite how close he was to unconsciousness. He felt something stir deep within his chest as she looked back at him, her lips tugged upward in a faint smile, her eyes sparkling with the light of a thousand suns, and wondered what he had done to deserve such a goddess.

“Yes, Link?” She asked, her voice equally drowsy, but filled with love.

“I love you,” he said, pouring every ounce of sincerity and honesty into the phrase, watching her light up at the words. “Goddesses, I love you so much.”

She squeezed his hands tighter, her joy clearly written across her face, and pulled him closer, enveloping him in her vanilla warmth as his body drifted back to sleep.

The last thing he heard was her quiet whisper: “And I love you.”

**Author's Note:**

> yeah i wrote this instead of studying for the ap tests i had this week but i regret nothing. tp zelink means more to me than stupid calculus ever did.
> 
> i drew some fanart to go along with this if you are interested: https://www.instagram.com/p/CAMBiQUhZNP/?igshid=155udnkyo0jqe
> 
> thanks for reading, have a nice weekend!


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